During the lifetime of a patient, it may be necessary to perform a joint replacement procedure on the patient as a result of, for example, disease or trauma. The joint replacement procedure may involve the use of a prosthetic implant, which is secured to one or more of the patient's bones. In the case of a knee replacement procedure, the prosthetic implant may be an assembly or system that includes a femoral component that is configured to be attached a surgically-prepared distal end of the patient's femur and a tibial tray component that is attached to a surgically-prepared proximal end of the patient's tibia. The prosthetic implant assembly may also include an insert component that is secured to the tibial tray component. Curved surfaces of the femoral component engage the insert component, and the interaction between the femoral component, the insert component, and the tibial tray component affect the resulting range of motion of the patient's knee.
The tibial tray component and the femoral component are typically fixed to the patient's tibia and patient's femur, respectively, through the use of bone cement. In the case of the tibial tray component, the bone cement is positioned between portions of the tibial tray component and a surgically-prepared surface of the proximal end of the patient's tibia. It has been found that the intra-operative presence of lipids and marrow, especially when combined with intra-operative motion of the tibial tray during implantation, can result in the infiltration of lipids and marrow into the implant/cement interface. The result can be a significant reduction in the fixation strength between the tibial tray and the bone cement.